Standing
tall to its morals and principles, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)
turns 87 on today, on the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashami. It
was founded in 1925 by K. B. Hedgewar, a revolutionary and doctor
from Nagpur, as a social and cultural organization in British India.

RSS volunteers participated in various political and social movements including the freedom movementand the organization became the leading nationalist Hindu organization in India.By the 1990s, the group had established numerous schools, charities and clubs to propagate its ideology.

Its volunteers are also known for their role in the relief and
rehabilitation work during natural calamities and for running more than
100,000 service programs in the field of education, health care, rural
development, tribal emancipation, village self-sufficiency, Farming
Programmes in rural India and the rehabilitation of lepers and special
needs children.

It was banned by the British, and then after independence three times
by the Government of India — first in 1948 when Nathuram Godse, an
alleged former member who left RSS, assassinated Mahatma Gandhi; then
during emergency (1975–1978); and after the Demolition of Babri
Masjid in 1992.

RSS was founded in 1925 by Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, who
was a doctor in the central Indian city of Nagpur. Hedgewar as a medical
student in Kolkatahad been a part of the revolutionary activities of
the Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar striving to free India from British
rule. He had been charged with sedition in 1921 by the British
Administration and was imprisoned for one year.

Hedgewar was educated by his elder brother. After matriculating, he
decided to go to Kolkata to study medicine. He was sent to Kolkata by
Dr. B. S. Moonje in 1910 to pursue his medical studies. There he lived
with Shyam Sundar Chakravarthy and learned the techniques of fighting
from the secret revolutionary organisations like the Anushilan
Samiti and Jugantar in Bengal. He is said to have joined Anushilan
Samiti and had contacts with revolutionaries like Ram Prasad Bismil.

Previously he was involved in such type of revolutionary activities,
This fact has been disclosed by so many writers viz. C.P.Bhishikar,M.S.
Golwalkar,K.S.Sudarshan and Rakesh Sinha previously. He came to believe
that although the revolutionaries had immense determination, in a
country of continental proportions it was impossible to instigate an
armed insurrection.

After completing his graduation, he returned to Nagpur, disillusioned
with the armed movement. In his memoirs, the third chief of
RSS, Balasahab Deoras narrates an incident when Hedgewar saved him and
others from following the path of Bhagat Singh and his comrades. Later
he left the revolutionary organisations in the year 1925 and formed the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Since Hedgewar was primarily associated with the Hindustan Republican
Association so he adopted the full constitution of erstwhile HRA and
implemented it forcibly in his newly established organisation RSS later
on. The RSS first met in 1925 just after two months of Kakori train
robbery in a small ground of Nagpur with 5-6 persons on Vijaya Dashami.
After the formation of the RSS, Hedgewar kept the organization away from
having any direct affiliation to any of the political organisations
then fighting British rule. But Hedgewar and his team of volunteers,
took part in the Indian National Congress, led movements against the
British rule. Hedgewar was arrested in the Jungle Satyagraha agitation
in 1931 and served a second term in prison.

The Partition of India was a very traumatic event in the young
nation’s history with millions of Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims attempting
to escape the violence and carnage that followed.

Noted Gandhian and recipient of the highest civilian award in
India, Bharat Ratna, Dr. Bhagwan Das commended the role of the
“high-spirited and self-sacrificing boys” of the RSS in protecting the
newly formed Republic of India, from a planned coup to topple
theJawaharlal Nehru Administration in Delhi.

Following Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination in 1948 by a former
member of the RSS, Nathuram Godse, many prominent leaders of the RSS
were arrested and RSS as an organization was banned on February 4, 1948.

A Commission of Inquiry into Conspiracy to murder of Mahatma Gandhi
was set and its report was published by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs
in the year 1970. Accordingly Justice Kapur Commission noted the
following:

…RSS as such were not responsible for the murder of Mahatma
Gandhi, meaning thereby that one could not name the organization as
such as being responsible for that most diabolical crime, the murder of
the apostle of peace. It has not been proved that they (the accused)
were members of the RSS…

—Kapur Commission Report,

RSS Leaders were acquitted of the conspiracy charge by the Supreme
Court of India and following an intervention by the Court, the Indian
Government agreed to lift the ban with condition that the RSS adopt a
formal constitution. The second Sarsanghachalak, Golwalkar drafted the
constitution for the RSS which he sent to the government in March 1949.
In July of the same year, after many negotiations over the constitution
and its acceptance, the ban on RSS was lifted.

On January 15, 2000, a daily, The Statesman, carried a story
about the RSS by A G Noorani, which depicted the RSS as the killer of
Gandhi. Subsequently the Delhi unit of the RSS filed a criminal case of
defamation against author of the article A G Noorani along with the
cartoonist and the Managing Director of the publishing house. When two
of the accused did not respond to the Court summons, non-bailable
warrants were issued in their name by the Court. On February 25, 2002,
Noorani wrote an unconditional apology to the court in which he
regretted writing the defamatory article against the RSS. On March 3,
2002, ‘The Statesman’ also published an apology regretting the
publication of the said article.

Field
Marshal Cariappa in his speech to RSS volunteers said “RSS is my heart’s
work. My dear young men, don’t be disturbed by uncharitable comments of
interested persons. Look ahead! Go ahead! The country is standing in
need of your services”

Liberation of Dadra, Nagar Haveli and Goa

After the independence of India, RSS was one of the socio-political
organisations who aspired to liberate Dadra and Nagar Haveli from
Portuguese occupation. In early 1954, volunteers Raja Wakankar and Nana
Kajrekar of the RSS visited the area round about Dadra and Nagar Haveli
and Daman several times to study the topography and also to get
acquainted with the local workers who were agitating for the liberation.
In April 1954, the RSS formed a coalition with the National Movement
Liberation Organization (NMLO), the and Azad Gomantak Dal (AGD) for the
liberation of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. On the night of 21 July, United
front of Goans, a group, working independently of the coalition,
captured the Portuguese police station at Dadra and declared Dadra as
free. Subsequently on 28 July, volunteer teams of the RSS and AGD
captured the territories of Naroli and Phiparia and ultimately the
capital of Silvassa. The Portuguese forces which escaped and moved
towards Nagar Haveli, were assaulted at Khandvel and were forced to
retreat till they surrendered to the Indian border police at Udava on 11
August 1954. A native administration was set up with Appasaheb
Karmalkar of NMLO as the Administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli on 11
August 1954.

The liberation of Dadra and Nagar Haveli gave a boost to the freedom
movement against the Portuguese in Goa. In 1955, RSS leaders demanded
the end of Portuguese rule in Goa and its integration into India. When
Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru refused to obtain it by armed
intervention, RSS leader Jagannath Rao Joshi led
the satyagraha agitation straight into Goa itself. He was imprisoned
with his followers by the Portuguese police. The peaceful protests
continued but met with severe repressions. On 15 August 1955, the
Portuguese police opened fire on the satyagrahis, killing thirty or so
people.

Role during the 1962 Sino-Indian War

The RSS which had been keeping low profile after the lifting of the
ban, earned recognition based on its volunteer work during
the Sino-Indian War in 1962. RSS was invited by Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru to take part in the Indian Republic day parade of
1963. It along with several other civilian organizations took part in
the parade. This event helped the RSS increase its popularity and its
patriotic image.

Later in 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars too, the RSS volunteers offered
their services to maintain law and order of the country and were
apparently the first to donate blood.

Movement for the restoration of democracy

In 1975, the Indian Government under the Prime Minister Mrs. Indira
Gandhi, proclaimed emergency rule in India, thereby suspending
the fundamental rights and curtailing the rights of the press. This
extreme step was taken after the Supreme Court of India, cancelled her
election to the Indian Parliament on charges of malpractices in the
election. The democratic institutions were kept under suspended
animation and prominent opposition leaders including
Gandhian Jayaprakash Narayan, were arrested and thousands of people were
detained without any charges being framed against them. RSS, which was
seen close to opposition leaders, and with its large organizational base
was seen to have potential of organizing protests against the
Government, was also banned.Police clamped down on the organization and
thousands of its workers were imprisoned.

The RSS defied the ban and thousands participated
in Satyagraha (peaceful protests) against the ban and against the
curtailment of fundamental rights. Later, when there was no letup, the
volunteers of the RSS formed underground movements for the restoration
of democracy. Literature that was censored in the media was
clandestinely published and distributed on a large scale and funds were
collected for the movement. Networks were established between leaders of
different political parties in the jail and outside for the
coordination of the movement. It said that the movement was “dominated
by tens of thousands of RSS cadres, though more and more young recruits
are coming”. Talking about its objectives it said “its platform at the
moment has only one plank: to bring democracy back to India”. The
Emergency was lifted in 1977 and as a consequence the ban on the RSS too
was lifted.

Participation in land reforms

It has been noted that the RSS volunteers participated in the Bhoodan
movement organized by Gandhian leader Vinobha Bhave. Vinobha Bhave had
met the RSS leader M. S. Golwalkar in Meerutin November 1951. Golwalkar
had been inspired by the movement that encouraged land reforms through
voluntary means. He pledged the support of the RSS for this
movement. Consequently, many RSS volunteers led by Nanaji
Deshmukh participated in the movement. But Golwalkar has also been
critical of the Bhoodan movement, on other occasions for being
reactionary and for working “merely with a view to counteracting
Communism”. He believed that the movement should inculcate a right and
positive faith in the masses that can make them rise above the base
appeal of Communism.

Organization

RSS does not have any formal membership. Anyone can become member by joining the nearest ‘Shakha’, which
is the basic unit. Although the RSS claims not to keep membership
records, it is estimated that the organization has 6 million members.

Sarsanghchalaks

The Sarsanghchalak (Sanskrit: सरसंघचालकः) is the head of the
RSS organization. The individuals who have held the post of
sarsanghchalak in this organisation are:

The position is decided through nomination by predecessor. The current Sarsanghachalak of RSS is Dr. Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat.

“Shakha” is Hindi for “branch”. Most of the organizational work of the RSS is done through the coordination of shakhas or branches. These shakhas are run for 1 hour in public places. In 2004, more than 60,000 shakhas were
run throughout India. However the number of Shakas has fallen by over
10,000 since the fall of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led government
in 2004.

The shakhas conduct various activities for its volunteers
which include physical fitness activities through yoga, exercises and
games. It has other activities which emphasize on qualities like civic
sense, social service, community living and patriotism. The volunteers
are trained in first aid and in rescue and rehabilitation operations.
The volunteers are also encouraged to get involved in the developmental
activities of the village or locality.

Significance of the Symbol

The emblem that has been chosen is the Bhagawa Dhwaj(saffron flag),
which brings before the eyes the living of the ancient, sacred and
integrated national life in all its pristine purity and entirely
crossing all superficial barriers of province, sect, creed, cast,
language and custom. Since times immemorial, it has been the symbol of
Indian dharma, the Indian culture, Indian traditions and ideals. It has
witnessed the rise and fall of empires, the penance of yogis and
sacrifice of heroes and symbolised the dreams of countless millions of
the land all through the ages.In short, it has been the highest, the
noblest and the truest symbol of our nationhood.

IT Milan

For swayamsevaks who work in information technology (IT) related
sectors another form of Shakha is set, called as “IT Milan”. These are
weekly meetings unlike the regular Shakhas which run daily. IT
Milans are observed in many IT cities in India
– Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune. There are as many as 3,000
techies in Bangalore who meet regularly this way. This 60–90 minutes
weekly gathering includes a Prayer, Surya Namaskara, Yoga, games, song
and sermon. IT Milans are user friendly; the prayer is available as a
printout, usually everyone is addressed in English, and there are enough
people to aid newcomers on the Surya Namaskara and seven yoga asanas.
These exercises have been designed for IT professionals who suffer from
chronic lower backache due to long hours at computers. It also helps
that their employers respect their RSS links. Games are played during
the Milan to relieve tension in the minds of IT Swayamsevaks and
foster team spirit. An IT Milan also serves as a forum for discussion
on various issues of national and international importance.

Mission

The mission of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has been described as the
revitalization of Indian value system based on universalism and peace
and prosperity to all. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, the worldview that the
whole world is one family, propounded by the ancient thinkers of India,
is considered as the ultimate mission of the organization.

But the immediate focus, the leaders believe, is on the Hindu
renaissance, which would build an egalitarian society and a strong India
that could propound this philosophy. Hence, the focus is on social
reform, economic upliftment of the downtrodden and the protection of
cultural diversity of the natives in India.[58] The
organization says, it aspires to unite all Hindus and build a strong
India, which could contribute to the welfare of the world. In the words
of RSS ideologue and the second head of the RSS, M S Golwalkar, “in
order to be able to contribute our unique knowledge to mankind, in order
to be able to live and strive for the unity and welfare of the world,
we stand before the world as a self-confident, resurgent and mighty
nation”.

RSS has been making determined efforts to inculcate in
our people the burning devotion for Bharat and its national ethos;
kindle in them the spirit of dedication and sterling qualities and
character; rouse social consciousness, mutual good-will, love and
cooperation among them all; to make them realise that casts, creeds and
languages are secondary and that service to the nation is the supreme
end and to mold their behaviour accordingly; instill in them a sense of
true humility and discipline and train their bodies to be strong and
robust so as to shoulder any social responsibility; and thus to create
all-round Anushasana in all walks of life and build together all our
people into a unified harmonious national whole, extending from
Himalayas to Kanyakumari.
— M. S. Golwalkar

Golwalkar also explains that RSS does not intend to compete in
electioneering politics or share power. He asserts that there is no
place in RSS for any hatred or opposition towards any particular caste,
creed or party. The movement considers Hindus as inclusive of Sikhs,
Jains, Buddhists, tribals, untouchables, Veerashaivism, Arya Samaj,
Ramakrishna Mission, etc. as a community, a view similar to inclusive
referencing of the term Hindu in the Indian Constitution.

Sangh Parivar

Organizations which are inspired by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s ideology refer themselves as the members of the Sangh Parivar. In most of the cases, pracharaks (full-time
volunteers of the RSS) were deputed to start and manage these
organizations. The organizations within the Sangh include the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad, Vanbandhu Parishad, Rashtriya Sevika Samiti, Akhil
Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, Vanavasi Kalyan Ashram, Bharatiya Mazdoor
Sangh, Vidya Bharati, Seva Bharati and many others spread in all parts
of society. Numerous other Hindu organizations take inspiration from the
RSS’s philosophy.

RSS has never directly contested elections, but supports parties that
are ideologically similar. Although RSS generally endorses
the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), yet at times had refused to do so due
to difference of opinion with the party. Also, RSS is open to support
any political party that subscribes to its views.

Of late, the volunteers of the RSS have also held prominent political
and administrative positions in India including the Prime Minister of
India, the Vice President of India, the Home Minister and Ministers in
the Central Government, Governors and Chief Ministers of various states
and the members of elected bodies at the state and the national level
and also the Indian ambassador to the US

Social service and reform

The RSS has advocated the training of Dalits and other backward
classes as temple high priests (a position traditionally reserved
for Caste Brahmins and denied to lower castes). They argue that the
social divisiveness of the Caste system is responsible for the lack of
adherence to Hindu values and traditions and reaching out to the lower
castes in this manner will be a remedy to the problem. The RSS has also
condemned ‘upper’ caste Hindus for preventing Dalits from worshipping at
temples, saying that “even God will desert the temple in which Dalits
cannot enter”

Christophe Jaffrelot finds that “there is insuficient data available
to carry out a statistical analysis of social origins of the early RSS
leaders” but goes on to conclude, based on some known profiles that most
of the RSS founders and its leading organisers, with exceptions were
Maharashtrian Brahmins from middle or lower class and argues that the
pervasiveness of the Brahminical ethic in the organisation was probably
the main reason why it failed to attract support from the low castes. He
argues that the “RSS resorted to instrumentalist techniques of
ethno-religious mobilisation – in which its Brahminism was diluted – to
overcome this handicap.” However Anderson and Damle 1987, find that
members of all castes have been welcomed into the organisation and are
treated as equals.

During M. K. Gandhi’s visit to RSS Camp accompanied by Mahadev
Desai and Mirabehn at Wardha in 1934, he was surprised by the discipline
and the absence of untouchability in RSS and commented “When I visited
the RSS Camp, I was very much surprised by your discipline and absence
of untouchablity.” He personally inquired to Swayamsevaks and found that
they were living and eating together in the camp without bothering to
know their castes.

Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar while visiting the RSS camp at Pune in 1939
observed that Swayamsevaks were moving in absolute equality and
brotherhood without even caring to know the cast of others. In his
address to the Swayamsevaks, he said that ” This is the first time that I
am visiting the camp of Sangh volunters. I am happy to find absolute
equality between Savarniyas (Upper cast) and Harijans (Lower cast)
without any one being aware of such difference existing.” When he asked
Dr Hedgewar whether there were any untouchables in the camp, he replied
that there are neither “touchables” nor “untouchables” but only Hindus.

It is noted that RSS is taking a lead role in providing the education
to people of rural India and socially backward classes living under the
extreme poverty.

Relief and rehabilitation

This is a long and continuous tradition with the RSS. The RSS was
instrumental in relief efforts after the 1971 Orissa Cyclone and
the 1977 Andhra Pradesh Cyclone.

An RSS-affiliated NGO, Seva Bharati, has adopted 57 children (38
Muslims and 19 Hindus) from militancy affected areas of Jammu and
Kashmir to provide them education at least up to Higher Secondary
level. They have also taken care of many victims of the Kargil War of
1999.

Natural calamities

The RSS assisted in relief efforts quite extensively during the 2001
Gujarat earthquake. They helped rebuild villages. They “earned kudos”
from many varied agencies and sources for their actions. For instance,
in the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, K. Srinivas, District
Collector of Ahmedabad, Indian newsmagazine Outlook and India
Today reported:

This is an old tradition in the RSS. To be the first at any
disaster strike: floods, cyclone, drought and now quake. In Kutch, too,
the RSS was the first to reach the affected areas. At Anjar, a town in
ruins, the RSS was present much before the Army took the lead in finding
survivors and fishing out the dead.

—K. Srinivas, District collector, Ahmedabad

Literally within minutes RSS volunteers were at the scenes of
distress. Across Gujarat, the (RSS) cadres were the saviors. Even as the
state machinery went comatose in the first two days after the quake,
the cadre-based machinery of the Sangh fanned out throughout the state.
Approximately 35,000 RSS members in uniform were pressed into service.

—Outlook,

It is conceded by even their worst detractors that the RSS has been
in the forefront of the non-official rescue and relief (operations).
This has led to an upsurge of goodwill for the Sangh

—India Today,

Seva Bharati conducted relief operations in the aftermath of the 2004
Indian Ocean earthquake. Activities included building shelters for the
victims, providing food, clothes and medical necessities. The RSS
assisted relief efforts during the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake and
the subsequent tsunami.

In 2006, RSS participated in relief efforts to provide basic
necessities such as food, milk and potable water to the people
of Surat, Gujarat who were affected by massive floods in the region.

The RSS volunteers carried out massive relief and rehabilitation work
after the floods ravaged North Karnataka and some districts of the
state of Andhra Pradesh.

According to Cho Ramaswamy, the editor of Tughlaq magazine, the
RSS-sponsored Sewa Bharati did yeoman service following the 2004 Indian
Ocean tsunami, despite a lack of formal acknowledgment.

Protection of Sikhs during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots

RSS helped protecting Sikhs during 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots. Sikh
intellectual and author of ‘A History of the Sikhs’, Khushwant Singh,
credits members of the RSS with helping and protectingSikhs who were
being targeted by members of the Congress(I) political party during
the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots.

RSS has played an honorable role in maintaining Hindu-Sikh unity
before and after the murder of Indira Gandhi in Delhi and in other
places It was the Congress (I) leaders who instigated mobs in 1984 and
got more than 3000 people killed. I must give due credit to RSS and the
BJP for showing courage and protecting helpless Sikhs during those
difficult days. No less a person than Atal Bihari Vajpayee himself
intervened at a couple of places to help poor taxi drivers.

—Khushwant Singh,

Discrimination against RSS volunteers

Many cases have been reported in post-independence India where RSS
volunteers have been discriminated against by the government due to
their allegiance to the RSS. In a court case of a teacher who was
dismissed from service due to his past links with the RSS, the Supreme
Court labeled the government’s action as “McCarthyism” and a “violation
of fundamental rights”.

A municipal school teacher, Ramshanker Raghuvanshi, was dismissed by
the Congress government of Madhya Pradesh in 1974, which stated that he
had taken “part in the RSS” activities and hence was “not a fit person
to be entertained in Government service”. The Supreme Court dismissed
the arguments of the government and said that the government had not
adhered to the provisions of the Indian Constitution. The Supreme Court
bench consisting of Justice Syed Murtuza Fazalali and Justice O.
Chinnappa Reddy observed that “India is not a police state” and pleaded
that the “promise of fundamental rights enshrined in the Indian
Constitution not become a forgotten chapter of history”. Delivering the
landmark judgment, the Court observed that “seeking a police report on
person’s political faith”, in the first place, “amounted to the
violation of fundamental rights”. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of
the municipal teacher and ordered his reinstatement.

Similar observations were made by the High courts of different
provinces of India in different cases of political persecution of RSS
volunteers. One case involved Ranganathacharya Agnihotri, who was
selected for the post of Munsiff but was not absorbed into service as he
had been a volunteer of the RSS in his past. When Agnihotri approached
to the then High Court of Mysore (nowKarnataka High Court), he was
reinstated. The Court observed:

Prima facie the RSS is a non-political cultural organization
without any hatred or ill will towards non-Hindus and that many eminent
and respected persons in the country have not hesitated to preside over
the functions or appreciate the work of its volunteers. In a country
like ours which has accepted the democratic way of life (as ensured by
the Constitution), it would not be within reason to accept the
proposition that mere membership of such peaceful or non-violent
association and participation in activities thereof, will render a
person (in whose character and antecedents there are no other defects)
unsuitable to be appointed to the post of a Munsiff.

—Karnataka High Court,

The RSS also has been banned in India thrice, during periods in which
the government of the time claimed that they were a threat to the
state: in 1948 after Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, during
the Emergency (1975–77), and after the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition. The
bans were subsequently lifted, in 1949 after the RSS was absolved of
charges in the Gandhi murder case, in 1977 as a result of the Emergency
being revoked, and in 1993 when no evidence of any unlawful activities
was found against it by the tribunal constituted under the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Act.

Reception

Field Marshal Cariappa in his speech to RSS volunteers said “RSS is
my heart’s work. My dear young men, don’t be disturbed by uncharitable
comments of interested persons. Look ahead! Go ahead! The country is
standing in need of your services”

Dr Zakir
Hussain the former President of India once told to Milad Mehfil in
Monghyar on November 20, 1949 “The allegations against RSS of violence
and hatred against Muslims are wholly false. Muslims should learn the
lesson of mutual love, cooperation and organization from RSS.

Noted Gandhian leader and the leader of Sarvoday
movement, Jayaprakash Narayan, who earlier was a vocal opponent of RSS
had the following to say about it in 1977 “RSS is a revolutionary
organization. No other organization in the country comes anywhere near
it. It alone has the capacity to transform society, end casteism and
wipe the tears from the eyes of the poor.” He further added “I have
great expectations from this revolutionary organization which has taken
up the challenge of creating a new India”